5 Free Artificial Intelligence (AI) Courses and Degrees 2025

Going to school when you're on a shoestring budget may seem formidable, but many people in this position still find ways to obtain their dream degrees.

While few colleges are tuition-free, you can find many tuition bargains as well as become eligible for 'full-ride' scholarships if you have a stellar academic record.

Don't give up on your goal of getting that degree! Below, we've gathered a handful of degree-and certificate-granting institutions that offer online programs in artificial intelligence that can be extremely affordable-and even free-if you qualify.

Free Online AI Courses from Tech Firms and Universities

According to the 2023 Stanford AI Index, America's need for AI-related professional skills has been increasing across every industrial sector (with the exception of agriculture, forestry, fishery and hunting) during the past year.

However, the nation lacks enough trained, skilled AI professionals. To address this shortage, many institutions and firms are offering basic online AI training courses. A recent Fortune magazine article named five prominent programs:

1. University of Pennsylvania: AI for Business

The University of Pennsylvania's free online AI for Business certificate program (taught through Coursera) includes four courses taught by UPenn professors from the Wharton School.

• AI Fundamentals for Non-Data Scientists
• AI Applications in Marketing and Finance
• AI Applications in People Management
• AI Strategy and Governance

Altogether, the program takes about four months to complete, in addition to an applied learning project.

2. Google: Google AI for Everyone

Google's free, introductory-level, four-week AI course, Google AI for Everyone, is taught online through the EdX education platform as a self-paced course by the leader of Google's Research into Machine Intelligence (RMI) team, Laurence Moroney.

3. University of California-Davis: Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Ethics

The University of California--Davis offers a free four-week certificate course through Coursera that focuses on AI: Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Ethics. The UC Davis professor teaching the course is Martin Hilbert, Chair for Computational Social Science.

4. Harvard University: Introduction to Artificial Intelligence with Python

Harvard University's seven-week Introduction to Artificial Intelligence with Python course, taught by esteemed Harvard computer science professor David J. Malan, is available online at no charge to those who have completed its CS50 (Introduction to Computer Science) course through EdX.

5. IBM: AI Foundations for Everyone

Through Coursera, IBM offers a three-month AI Foundations for Everyone certificate program, taught by Rav Ahuja and Antonio Cangiano, that includes three courses:

• Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• Getting Started with AI using IBM Watson
• Building AI-Powered Chatbots Without Programming.

Qualifying for Scholarships, Grants, and Other Financial Aid to Reduce Tuition Dramatically

You might be surprised at how many students receive substantive discounts on their college or graduate school tuition. Most universities will tell you what their average student discount is, supporting the argument that very few students pay the 'full sticker price' for their education.

Generally, a student can earn scholarships, grants, and other awards in two ways: based on academic merit and based on financial need.

You can also get reduced tuition through a tuition waiver (based on a number of qualifications, such as residency, age, military service, disability, and other factors), and you can often make money through graduate assistantships to offset your tuition.

Financial Need

The first step to finding out how much financial assistance you may qualify for at any given school is to complete and submit the federal Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form.

The FAFSA is a precursor to most need-based financial aid awards. Be sure to pay close attention to submission deadlines.

Academic Merit

Colleges and universities, private organizations, corporations, and community groups award merit-based scholarships to students who show promise through their high academic achievement as well as their extracurricular activities, such as community involvement.

To earn scholarships based on academic merit, you should consult with the financial aid office of the university you want to attend. A specialist there can help you find and apply for the scholarships that you might qualify for.

You may already have connections to funding sources through your current employer (if you are an adult student), your parents' employers, your religious organization, or other clubs in your community that you or your family members may be affiliated with.

Scholarships for AI Degree-Seekers

Many scholarships are available to students desiring a career in a particular field. You can find hundreds of scholarships for students interested in artificial intelligence (AI), such as:

The Amazon Web Services (AWS) Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) Scholarship program, in collaboration with Udacity, targets underserved and underrepresented high school and college students who are preparing for careers in AI and ML.

The  Intel® Edge AI Scholarship Program from Udacity  is available to those desiring to work with computer vision deep learning models through the Intel® Edge AI Fundamentals Course.

Students need some background in AI, computer vision, either Python or C++, and command line basics. Further, the top students from the initial course will be eligible for 750 scholarships to the advanced Intel® Edge AI for IoT Developers Nanodegree program.

Full Sail University's Emerging Technology Scholarship and its Women in Technology Scholarship  both award full tuition to eligible candidates seeking to earn technology-related bachelor's degrees at the university through online study.

CommandBar's AI Innovators Undergraduate Scholarship  is a new scholarship aimed to support talented undergraduate students studying AI who exhibit 'exceptional academic achievement, strong leadership potential, and a deep passion for AI and its potential for transforming the future.'

The  U.S. Department of Defense's SMART Scholarships are for students pursuing a technical degree (either undergraduate or graduate-level) in one of the 21 STEM disciplines.

Candidates should possess a minimum 3.0 GPA, be available for summer internships, and commit to post-graduate employment at the Department of Defense.

Where Can I Earn an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Degree Online for Free or at Minimal Cost?

Based on the above information, you could potentially earn an online college or graduate degree for little to no cost at any school or university. You can also enroll in any of the free certificate programs.

When you are searching for desirable AI degree programs, be sure to research the financial aid awards and scholarship options through each university, which you can best achieve by speaking directly with a financial aid officer.

Start Now To Learn About Educational Opportunities in Artificial Intelligence

Never let the thought 'I can't afford it' prevent you from pursuing possibilities for a higher education. Funding is available from many sources if you take the initiative to track it down and apply for it.